Beauty Blab: Powder Blushes I use the most!

Out of all the drawers in my vanity cabinet, my blush drawer has got to be my favorite. It's such eye candy! :) When I was just starting getting into makeup, I was a total blush hoarder! It's the first thing I look at whenever I visit makeup counters and stores. My goal back then was to collect every shade they had. Well, with a limited budget, that didn't materialize. Teehee. 

I thought I'd share with you blushes that I reach for the most. What I look for in a good blush is blendability and longevity. All of the blushes here are easy to blend. Longevity wise, I wish the Benefit Boxed Blushes would stay longer on my cheeks. Nonetheless, I love all of them. <3

When I'm picking out blushes I'm going to wear, I usually base it on my mood. When I'm aiming for that sun kissed, just got back from the beach kind of look, I pick blushes with gold tones like the NARS Luster. When I'm feeling a bit dull, I gravitate towards cool toned blushes.

Out of the bunch, I'd say my favorite would be Tarte Amazonian Clay in Exposed. It's a natural mauvish shade that is great for everyday wear. Plus I love that it's matte because most days I really don't feel like having glitter on my face.

What blushes do you reach for the most?

xx,

Thea

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Makeup Play: Makeup for Deep Set Eyes

From time to time I find a friend to practice my makeup "skills" on. ;) Meet Kharizza. She has gorgeous skin and is blessed with a full set of brows and lashes. I wanted to play up her deep set eyes. And she wanted to see how a smokey eye would look on her.

Here's her BEFORE and AFTER.

For deep set eyes, I placed much of the color concentration on the outside corners of her eyes. I placed a shimmery light eye shadow all over her lids and in the inner corner to accentuate it.

I slowly moved from light brown, to chocolate brown, to navy blue on the outer corner to give it a gradient effect. I combined the light brown and navy blue on the lower half of her eyes.

I loved how her brows are quite bushy. I love it when brows don't look to drawn on. I just brushed it up with clear brow gel and gave it a little emphasis with a black eye shadow.

Kharizza had a round face so I contoured her cheeks and forehead, and highlighted the tops of her cheekbones.

Products used:

Face: Lancome Teint Miracle
Blush: Tarte Amazonian Clay in Exposed
Eyeshadow: Bobbi Brown
-Champagne (Shimmer Wash Eyeshadow)
-Rich Navy (Matte)
-Khaki (Matte)
-Rich Espresso (Matte)
Lips: Revlon Lip Butter Cotton Candy
Mascara: Lancome Hypnose Doll
Contour: Buck from the Urban Decay Naked Palette

P.S. My next project would be learning how to minimize eyebags. :)

xx,

Thea

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REVIEW: Dr. Jart Water Fuse BB (Beauty Balm) SPF 25

Price: $34.00, 50mL
          Php1,975.00 at Marionnaud Mall of Asia
Bought at: www.Sephora.com

Dr. Jart Water Fuse Beauty Balm SPF 25

The Dr. Jart BB range has become one of the most popular brands in Asia, specially in Korea. It is said to be a one-step skin perfecting balm that minimizes the need for foundation or concealer. It features a unique water bead formula which helps hydrate the skin, leaving tiny droplets of water once it's applied. It is then absorbed, leaving the skin moisturized and looking dewy. It is oil-free and has SPF 25. Like most BB creams, it comes in only one universal shade.

Dr. Jart beauty balms has lots of variants; they have CC balms and BB's that are targeted towards skin renewal. I chose the Water Fuse BB because it claims to be made of 50% water. Water is always good, right? It has actually been in the market for a while but I haven't noticed it getting a lot of hype in the Philippines. Although I bought this at an international online site, it has been made available to the Philippines about 2 years ago.

Dr. Jart Water Fuse Beauty Balm SPF 25

Packaging

Dr. Jart Water Fuse BB Balm comes in a simply designed, squeezable tube. Really convenient to carry around and the cap doesn't seem to budge so it would be safe to put inside your purse. My concern about the packaging though is that, like most squeezable tubes, it can be quite hard to get the products out specially if you've used up more than half of it. Nonetheless, the size is just right to fit our kikay kit.

Dr. Jart Water Fuse Beauty Balm SPF 25

Consistency and Color

The consistency is quite thick which is expected as it claims to cover up blemishes. But it was quite ironic too since, as mentioned above, half of it is made of water. So you would think that it can be quite runny. I was worried about the color when I saw it. It looked quite grayish right from the tube. Fair skinned people wouldn't be so apprehensive with this. This is the usual problem with most BB creams; we don't really have a choice. I have quite warm tones to my skin and I admit I was on the fence when I saw it swatched against my hand.

The camera didn't pick up on the grayish tones so you may not notice it in my swatch photo below.

Dr. Jart Water Fuse Beauty Balm SPF 25

Application and Wear

I used a MAC 187 brush to apply the product onto my skin. The reason I used this brush is because I feel like this will help thin out the product upon application. If you're like me who doesn't want a lot of coverage, then this is the way to go. It was a bit stiff to work with. However, using circular motions with the brush will help it blend easily. 

The color blended in with my skin quite surprisingly. It didn't leave a ghastly cast considering it has quite a grayish tint. It covered up redness on my skin and gave it an even finish. What I like is that if felt lightweight and didn't cling to dry skin around my nose. I noticed I was quite shiny on the t-zone a few hours into wear. A shine that is more than the dewy look.

Longevity

The product doesn't claim to be long wearing. I noticed it faded on the areas where I was sweating; like on the top of my upper lip, on the temples, and on my forehead.

Final Recommendations

People with oily skin may suffer from too much shine from this product. Great for people with normal to dry skin. The sun protection feature makes it a great all in one product. I would recommend this for those who are always on the run and wants a fuss free, one-step makeup, as it is a skincare product too.

Before (left) and After (right) using Dr. Jart Water Fuse Beauty Balm SPF 25

xx,

Thea

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